Co-founder and former executive director of Shanta Biotech, Khalil Ahmed, has acquired city-based food brand Hyderabad House for an undisclosed consideration.
The acquisition was done through a one-time special purpose vehicle Food Krafters & Services LLP (FKS), promoted by Ahmed and his daughter Sumaiya Khalil. With this, FKS now plans to establish a firm footprint in the fast-growing food services market, in particular the quick restaurant services (QSR) segment.
Paradise Biryani, which claims to be “the world’s favourite biryani”, of late is on an expansion spree. With the backing of Samara Capital, it is expanding aggressively by rolling out exclusive food-and-dine outlets in the south metros, including Chennai and Bengaluru. Paradise is patronised by celebrities including cricketers Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid; Bollywood actor Salman Khan, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and chef Sanjeev Kapoor.
Organised QSR biryani market is worth Rs 2,000 crore, dominated by a few large chains like the Karim’s in Delhi, Lucky in Mumbai, Nagarjuna in Bengaluru and Paradise among others.